Author-turned-character questions nature of sanity in 'Man of La Mancha'

"Too much sanity is madness."

So declares Miguel de Cervantes, renowned 16th-century Spanish author and a character in Dale Wasserman's "Man of La Mancha," a musical presented jointly by the Princeton University Players and Theat-re~Intime.

The statement summarizes one of the central ideas of the play: that an excessively sober and boringly realistic view of the world is demoralizing and that a little delusional insanity isn't necessarily a bad thing.

In this play-within-a-play, Cervantes portrays his most famous character, Don Quixote, while he and others are locked up during the Inquisition.

"Since the idea of the play is something that is pulled out of Cervantes's imagination, I have tried very hard to make the show feel spontaneous," said director Sarah Rodriguez '03. "The play is really only loosely based on the book and life of Cervantes, which is as full of shadows and questions as his contemporary, William Shakespeare," she added.

In particular, there is no evidence that Cervantes was tried during the Inquisition, though he was taken captive by Barbary pirates in 1575 and was not always on the best side of the Church.

Rodriguez further commented, "There is a kind of messiah-like quality to Cervantes in the story. He comes into this prison, brings his story, his hope and leaves again. He hasn't changed, but the people whose lives he touched have been changed forever."

Rodriguez herself can be counted among these people, for as a young girl she "fell in love with the absolutely awful film version with Peter O'Toole and Sophia Loren — neither of whom can sing — and I went around the house singing all the songs and ever since it has been one of my favorite musicals."

The rest of the world couldn't agree more. Win-ner of numerous Tony awards, including Best Musical in 1965, "Man of La Mancha" has played countless times on Broadway and has become a standard by which other musicals are measured.

In this month's joint PUP-Theatre~Intime production, Sanjiv Bajaj '02 plays the role of Cervantes and in turn, the Spanish nobleman who becomes Don Quixote, the Man of La Mancha. Even while laughing at his mishaps, one cannot help admiring his unfailing optimism and unquestioning faith in "the Impossible Dream," also the title of one of the show's most famous songs.

In particular, New York Times reviewer Alvin Klein wrote, "Ask any composer or star of a failed musical based on a classic to explain why their show bombed in New York, and it's likely they won't blame the critics; the answer is apt to be a variation of the same whine: 'We didn't have our 'Impossible Dream.' ' "

Nicole Muller '05 plays the role of Aldonza, a serving maid whom Don Quixote refers to as Dulcinea, his Lady, to whom he pledges his life and love. Though initially repulsed by the delusional absurdity of his archaic noble airs, Aldonza is gradually charmed by Quixote's lofty ideals and chivalric manner, for he is one man different from all the others.

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The show includes a scene of Don Quixote tilting at a windmill, or charging it as in a joust, for he mistakes it for an evil giant. Nineteenth-century artist Gustave Doré captured this famous scene in a painting. Also memorable is a scene in which Don Quixote mistakes a barber's simple shaving basin for a magical golden helmet and another in which he is knighted by an innkeeper.